“It will be a huge morale-booster” for teachers, said Charles Goodmacher, the government and media relations director for the National Education Association-New Mexico union. “It could even convince some people who were thinking about leaving to stay longer.”

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten said it was telling that Lujan Grisham’s first official action as governor was focused on public education.

“The governor recognizes what renowned scientists have been saying for years – that an overreliance on standardized testing turns schools from welcoming learning sanctuaries to testing factories,” Weingarten said.

However, the governor’s announcement was not met with universal applause, even among teachers.

Three founding members of the organization, which was created last summer, also said in a statement that teachers unions do not speak for all educators.

David Peercy, president of the Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education, said he’ll watch closely to see what new system the state adopts.

He told the Journal that he’s not anti-PARCC but has been against the way the test has been used. The former PED administration used PARCC scores as a factor in school grades, which were used to identify low-performing schools for potential closure, and teacher evaluations.

Results from the PARCC test, short for Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, were used by the Martinez administration in the state’s school grading and teacher evaluation systems, both of which could now undergo changes.

The initial implementation of the annual standardized test prompted walkouts, protests and criticism from Democratic lawmakers . Nearly 5,500 students declined to take the exam in the first year it was implemented, but that number and the protests have dropped significantly. The state has also made changes, including shortening the test.

During Thursday’s news conference, Lujan Grisham said some parts of the PARCC exam may still be used this spring – when the annual test is scheduled to be taken – to ensure that New Mexico complies with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, which she voted for as a member of Congress.

The governor also said feedback from teachers, school administrators and parents will be used to create the new assessment tool.

In addition, she said she believes the changes will be allowable under federal law, which requires annual tests from third to eighth grades but gives states flexibility in how they’re administered.

“My expectation is my leadership team deals with that proactively so we don’t have those (problems),” Lujan Grisham said.

“We want to build on that – that’s a good thing for New Mexico,” Lujan Grisham said.

Education secretary

Although several Cabinet secretaries have been named, Lujan Grisham has not announced her pick to run the Public Education Department.

She said Thursday that she will unveil her choice before the 60-day legislative session starts Jan. 15, but she indicated that logistical challenges – including the $128,000-per-year salary – have complicated efforts to fill the post.

“I’m not going to move so quickly we don’t have the right person in this job,” Lujan Grisham told reporters.